Undoubtedly, as the first Servant battle with the Ruler as the fuse, the events of that night had long been taken in by the supervisory familiars sent by both sides. But what both the Red and Black sides had not expected was that through this first battle, the one who had left the deepest impression on them was neither the Caster of Red, Queen Morgan of Britain, nor the dragonslaying hero Siegfried, who had descended as the strongest class, Saber, of the Black side, and not even the extra class Ruler who was loaded with cheats.
To everyone's surprise, the most eye-catching person was not even a Servant, but the Master of Caster of Red, Souya Kotomine.
When Amakusa and the Empress saw through the pigeon familiars that he had fought and won against the Saber of Black with a mortal body, even though the former knew from the letters of the Kotomine family that his own strength was not inferior to an ordinary Servant, after watching that scene happen, he was also greatly shocked.
If he had defeated the other side's Caster and Assassin, who were relatively weak in hard strength, it would have been fine. But that was a Saber! Whether it was a regular Holy Grail War or a Subcategory, the fact that the Saber class was the strongest and most balanced class was known to almost everyone. And with a little thought, it was also known that even if Yggdmillennia was poor and had low ability, to win this Holy Grail War that had been planned for 60 years, the Saber they had chosen would definitely not be a weakling.
So when Amakusa realized that the him in his impression was no longer the little brother who would always come to him with a humble attitude to explore problems, he began to seriously think about how to face such a him. Although he was very confident that he, who also had the makings of a saint, would definitely understand his great ideal, but believing was one thing, preparing was another. After all, for planners like them, a person with great strength was in itself a variable.
But compared to his side, the Black side, after seeing these images through Roche's flying familiars, the anxiety they felt was far greater than the former's. After all, from the current camp, he was undoubtedly their enemy.
Thus, when Gordes returned to the Millennia Castle in a black sedan with Siegfried, he was immediately summoned by Vlad III, that is, the Grand Duke.
"Tsk, Darnic's position as the head of the family is really getting worse and worse! To have actually let a familiar like a Servant sit on his head and give orders. It's a great humiliation to our Yggdmillennia clan!"
Although he was dissatisfied and disdainful of Darnic's way of getting along with his Servant, no matter what, he was now the nominal leader of the Yggdmillennia clan. His power over the family and the control of the various great families were far beyond what the current him could compare to. So even if he was resentful, in the end, he still held his temper. As soon as he got out of the car, without even changing his dirty clothes, he went to the great hall of the family castle and saw the King of Darkness, Vlad III, sitting high on the throne, and Darnic standing beside him, his attitude respectful, looking like a courtier.
Looking down at Gordes, who was standing below the throne and bowing to him with a reluctant face, and Siegfried, who had appeared beside him, except for the rune on his chest that represented the Armor of Fafnir, the rest of his body had almost recovered, Vlad III slightly tilted his head and glanced at Darnic beside him. As the one who understood power the most in the Clock Tower, Darnic naturally understood what he meant. So he took the initiative to take a step forward and said to him, "Report on the situation and results of your actions tonight, Gordes."
"Yes."
Speaking of business, he also composed his emotions and began to describe what he had seen and heard in detail. "According to Caster's prediction, I arrived at the intersection where the Ruler was about to appear in advance and waited. But after waiting there for a long time, I didn't see anyone. And Saber just happened to sense the aura of a Servant at that time, so we followed the aura and rushed over. There, we saw the Caster of Red and her Master attacking the Ruler and trapping her with magic. Seeing the situation, I had originally wanted to wait until they wanted to kill the Ruler and then take the opportunity to attack them. Not only could I try to kill the other side's Servant who was relatively weak in close combat, but I could also take this opportunity to build a good relationship with the Ruler, to see if I could pull her into our camp to fight against the Red side together."
At this, he was silent for a moment. Although his eyes were full of resistance, in the end, he still said in a low voice, "But I didn't expect that they had not only been on guard long ago, but also that the Master of Caster of Red, that guy named Souya Kotomine, actually had the strength to fight against a Servant, and even to fight with my Saber, Siegfried..."
"Wait a minute, Master of Saber."
Before he could finish, the Grand Duke who was originally sitting on the throne and listening suddenly spoke up and interrupted him. Ignoring the former's face, which was full of grievance and resentment, the Grand Duke, while propping up his chin with his hand and thinking, looked at Siegfried, who had been silent all along. "About this matter, I want to hear the opinion of the one who fought with that young priest. So, you will narrate the rest of the story."
"Understood."
Hearing this, he glanced at his Master. Seeing that although his face was as ugly as if he had eaten a fly, he did not object, so after a little hesitation, he said, "The youth I fought with was named Souya Kotomine. He claimed that his goal was to become a saint, and the battle with me was also initiated by him. As for his purpose, although I am not clear, but according to what he said, it should be to awaken some original power."
"Souya Kotomine, saint, power..."
Softly chewing on these few words, Vlad III cast his gaze towards Darnic. "Darnic, for this name, do you know anything?"
Hearing this, he lowered his head and thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, my King. I have no related impression of him in my memory. But from this person's attire and words and deeds, he should belong to the opposite of the Mages' Association, the other of the two major organizations that rule the mystery of this world, the Holy Church, that is, a derivative of Christianity, or rather, the side of the mystery."
"Oh? In other words, this youth is a person who believes in the glory of the Lord just like me?"
Hearing this, a trace of interest appeared in the Grand Duke's originally somewhat sinister eyes. But he did not pay too much attention to this problem, but after a little thought, he once again cast his gaze towards Siegfried and asked the question he had long known. "Then, how was the battle?"
"I'm sorry, Lord King. Because of my carelessness, I lost to him. So I ask you to punish me."
Faced with such a question, he had long expected it. He also didn't think of making excuses for himself. Whether he had gone easy on him or had been careless, as long as he had lost, then in the end, he had lost. There was nothing to argue about.
But his Master Gordes clearly didn't think so. "Hey, hey, this was just an accident! Who could have imagined that that guy who looked so weak actually had such strength! This is not Saber's problem!"
As if he were a little dissatisfied with him interrupting his conversation with Siegfried and making a fuss, the Grand Duke frowned slightly. Seeing this scene, Darnic quickly stepped forward and stopped him with a stern tone. "Shut up! Gordes! As a Master of the Black side, you are also one of my King's subjects. To interrupt the King's and Saber's conversation regardless of your image, what kind of thing is that! What's more, a loss is a loss. As for Saber's punishment, my King has his own decision. You have no right to say more! Hurry up and retreat!"
"Tsk!" Hearing this, he subconsciously clenched his fists, and flames of anger burned in his eyes.
Seeing this scene, his expression suddenly changed. But just as he was about to kneel down and plead for his Master, the Grand Duke suddenly raised his hand and stopped all this. "Alright, no more quarreling."
He stood up from the throne, first glanced at Darnic at the side, and after seeing the other quickly put on a respectful attitude, he didn't say much more, but turned to look at Siegfried and Gordes below. "Although as a general of my camp, Saber, you have lost the victory of this first battle because of a momentary carelessness. According to the military situation, for both emotional and rational reasons, you should be punished. But I am not a pedantic person, and this war is not an ordinary war. Then as a hero, you also have no need to blame yourself. The glory a warrior has lost can be won back with a sword later."
"I understand. Thank you, Lord King."
Hearing this, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, and his originally fiery eyes also slowly calmed down.
"Then, the top priority, what we have to consider and deal with is how to deal with the other side's extra Servant's combat power, and what kind of changes this youth named Kotomine will bring to us."
As he spoke, the Grand Duke paced down from the throne. While speaking, as if he had sensed something, his gaze passed over Siegfried and Gordes and landed on a cluster of flower petals that had floated in from outside the window. At the same time, a knock also sounded from the main hall's door.
"For this matter, I would rather hear the opinions of the sages."
Seeing this, a smile appeared on the corner of his lips.
....
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